Julian Assange ‘cross trained’ with former Manchester United footballer Eric Cantona sweating on Assange’s treadmill. The whistleblower’s rendezvous left journalists guessing what the deal is behind the two as the video of them training emerged online.

Film director Romain Gavras shared a short clip and a picture of
the WikiLeaks founder and Cantona working out, obviously in the
Ecuadorian embassy in London, where Assange has been living since
2012 and which he has no right to leave.

The linked picture showed Assange with a towel over his shoulders
and a fitness-tracker standing next to Cantona puffing on the
running machine. The Guardian reported that the treadmill was
given to Assange by Ken Loach, who worked with Cantona for his
2009 film ‘Looking for Eric’.

“They discussed a future collaboration, talked football and
Julian tested Cantona’s fitness,” Assange’s spokesman said
later. “The collaboration will be revealed in due
course.”

The Guardian, meanwhile, suggested that the odd couple is “in
the early stages of cooking up a film idea.”

The Independent assumed that Gavras’ presence could mean that
“this is a film project” for which “Cantona needs to
shape up.”

The Daily Mail recalled that both Assange and Cantona showed
“interest in martial arts.”

WikiLeaks started using the hashtag #counterintelligenceworldcup
last week to highlight the ongoing Germany-US spying scandal.

On Wednesday a court in Sweden is again hearing the Assange ‘rape
case’. The whistleblower is wanted in Sweden for questioning over
allegations of the rape and sexual assault of two women. Swedish
authorities issued a warrant for Assange’s extradition back in
2012, forcing the WikiLeaks founder to seek asylum in Ecuador’s
London Embassy. He has been there since then. Should he leave,
Assange will be arrested and extradited to Sweden and from there,
possibly, to the US, where he is wanted on charges of espionage
due to his role in exposing American state secrets. In America he
may face the death penalty.